Preschool Artwork: It’s OK to Throw Most of It Away

Nov 10, 2011 Uncategorized

Just in these past few weeks of the school year, I’ve sent home with my preschool students hundreds of paintings on oversized newsprint, drawings on dot matrix printer paper, and sculptures made of recyclables. Most children love to create. But what to do when all that art comes into the house?

First, as a preschool teacher, I want to tell you that your child’s time being creative is very important. Your child’s brain is growing smarter as they experiment with different forms of media, different techniques, and different subjects.

Then, I want to tell you, both as a preschool teacher and a professional organizer, that it’s OK to throw most of that art away.

In our early years, it is the process of creating that is more important than the creation itself. Unless the end product portrays something particularly meaningful or a breakthrough in terms of technique or developmental progress, it is not worth saving. If you do, you’ll only be buried in artwork by the end of kindergarten, and it will be even harder to find the really special pieces of artwork in the pile.